Holding and disengaging gear for the boats of ships and the like.



T. I. MAGAULAY.

APPLIOATION FILED JULY- 14, 1911.

Patented Feb. 6, 1912.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

@Nimm EN COLUMBIA PLANOGRAPH CO..WASHINOTON. D. c.

OILDING AND DISENGAGING GEAR FOR THE BOATS OF SHIPS AND THE LIKE.

T. I. MACAULAY. HOLDING AND DISENGAGING GBARTOB. THE BOATS 0F SHIPS AND THE LIKE.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 14, 1911.

1,016,840. A muted Feb. 1912.

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m/PM @m OOLUMIIA PLANOGRAPH C0.. WASHINGTON. D. C.

T. I. MACAULAY. i HOLDING AND DISBNGAGING GEAR POR THB BOATS 0F SHIPS AND THE LIKE.

- APPLICATION FILED JULY 14, 1911. 1,01 6,840. Patented Feb. e, 1912.

s SHEETS-sume.

me? 037mm UNITED STATES PATENT 4OEIICE.

THOMAS IRVINE MACAULAY, OF BIRKENHEAD, ENGLAND.

HOLDING AND DISENGAGING GEAR FOR THE BOATS OF ASHIPS AND THE LIKE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed .Tuly 14, 1911.

Patented Feb. 6, 1912.

Serial No. 638,523.

To all whom t may concern,

Be it known thatI I, THOMAS IRVINE MACAULAY, a subject of the King of Great Britain, residing at Birkenhead, in the county of Chester, in the Kingdom of England, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Holding and Disengaging Gear for the Boats of Ships and the Like, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to a holding and disengaging gear for ships boats.

It is the object of the invention to provide a gear which can be released when required by the movement of a handle, but which will be safe in action and not liable to become released accidentally.

It has been proposed already to employ holding and disengaging gears in which the blocks used for raising and lowering a boat have eyes upon them which pass through sockets at the ends of the boat and are engaged by hooks; these hooks are adapted to be operated by j aw devices on a shaft eX- tending longitudinally of the boat and are released by turning the said shaft by means of handles which are pressed downward for releasing purposes. It was proposed in such devices also to provide a weighted catch pivoted opposite to the hook and arranged to rise and hold back the hook. when the releasing had been effected. In such devices, however, as previously proposed there were various defects. The longitudinal shaft extended along the boat near to the middle thereof and was liable to be damaged or distorted as it was not protected in any way. The handles also were liable to be trodden upon whereby the releasing might be accidentally occasioned, resulting in the premature fall of the boat with serious consequences. In the device according to the present invention the operating mechanism is completely protected under the sides and ends of the boat so that there is no likelihood of the unintentional releasing of the boat, and improvements are made in the holding device admitting of adjustment and more certain action thereof.

The invention is illust-rated in the accompanying drawings wherein- Figure 1 is a plan view of the actuating mechanism on a small scale, the outline of i a boat and the thwarts thereof being indicated in dotted lines. Fig. 2 is a cross section of the holding device at one end of the boat,y shown in the released position. Fig. 3 is a similar view showing the device in action. Fig. 4 is a cross section at right angles t0 Fig. 3.

Referring to the drawings, 1 represents the outline of the boat, 2 is the handle by which the releasing is effected and 20 is the pivot of the said handle. It will be noted that the handle lies beneath one of the thwarts 21 of the boat while its pivot 20 is under the inclosed side thereof. The thwart is cut away a little as shown to enable the handle to be readily grasped and seen. 19 represents a lashing which may be use to tie back the handle in the position show-n wherein the hooks are in engagement as described below.

9 represents a spring which presses on the handle tending to turn it in a counter-clockwise direction to maintain the hooks in engagement. At equal distances from the pivot 20 and at opposite sides thereof, rods 8 are pivotally connected to the handle 2. These rods extend beneath the inclosed side port-ion of the boatv and are connected at their ends to bell crank levers 7 pivoted at 22 onthe frame of the boat. The other arms of the bell crank levers 7 are connected by links 6 to hook shaped members 5 shown in Figs. 2, 3 and 4. These members lie with their heads just beneath sockets 3 fitted at the ends of the boat to receive the eye-pieces 4 connected to the falls or tackle vby which the boat is raised and lowered. At the under side of each socket 3 a catch 10 is pivoted on a pin 14 between the cheeks 16, the catch being pressed upwardpartly by a bent spring 15 attached to the pivot pin 14 and partly by the heavy tail piece 23 of the catch 10. It will be noted that the catches 10 are pivoted to work in a plane at right angles to that of the hooks 5. The counter-weights 23 and the springs 15 together make certain that the catches 10 will always tend to rise when free to do so and if the springs fail to act effectively for any reason the counter-weights will insure the action required. The faces 26 of the sockets form the limiting stops for the rising of the Y hook to be adjusted with regard to its pivf their springs and counter-weights. The` oting center. For t-his purpose the end of the hook is screw-threaded and is passed through a broad and rounded aperture formed at 12 in a bridge piece 11 which is attached by bolts 24 to the keel of the boat. Nuts 13 above and below the bridge piece 11 limit the movement of the hook inthe said bridgeV piece and'determine the height to which the hook-will raise when pulled upward, and the amount by which it can fallV when free to drop. The nuts 13 can be readily adjusted when required and can be locked in position for instance by split pins 25. The head of each hook 5 works through a slot formed at 17 in the walls of the socket 3, by which the said hook is prevented from moving laterally. v

18 is a right and left hand threaded coupling in the rod 8 connect-ing together two parts of the said rod and serving to enable the length of the rod to be adjusted when re-v quired so as to bring both hooks 5 into similar positions, sc-that they will be operated exactly simultaneously by the movement of the handle 2. This adjustment is important in `enabling the boat to be released simultaneously at both ends, without any risk of failure. Y

The operation of the device will need very little further description. Assuming that the boat is on the chocks, and it is required to lower theiboat, the eye-pieces 4 on the falls `or blocks may be already in engagement with the hooks 5 in the sockets 3. If

not already in engagement the eye-pieces will be pressed into the sockets 3 depressing vthe catches 10 and permitting the hooks 5 to pass through thevsaid eye-pieces, as shown in Figs. 3 and 4, under the action of the spring 9 on thevhandle 2. Before the insertion of the eye-pieces the catches 10 will be holding back the hooks as seen in Fig. 2. After the engagement has been effected the handle 2 will be in the position shown in Fig. 1. The boat can then be raised, and lowered into the water in the usual way. When the boatV touches the water or when it iswatereborne, it will be required that the releasing should beveffected. The handle 2 will then be pulled outward from beneath thethwart 21 thus pulling inward both of the rods 8 and pulling backward the links 6 connectedto the hooks 5. Both of these hooks will therefore be pulled backward until the eyes 4 are free to move upward when the said eyes will be thrown upward by the catches 10 under the action of catches l()V then hold back the hooks 5 as shown in Fig. 2. The catches 10 therefore prevent the unintentional rengagement of the eye-pieces with the hooks,and the said eye-piecesmust be forced into the sockets by intentional pressure if they are to be reengaged by the hooks.

It will be noted as pointed out already that all the parts of this device are arranged so that they are protected as far as possible by the sides, ends and thwarts of the boat from being damaged, and none of the parts are exposed except the handle of the lever which is only exposed to the extent to give easy access to it when required. The device is easy. to adjust for correct action by means ofthe coupling 18 and by the adjusting nuts 13 on the hooks 5.

The parts of the device may obviously be replaced by mechanical equivalents thereof without departing from the scope of the invention.

I declare that what I claim is 1. In a holding and disengaging gear for ships boats, the combination with an operating handle and connections therefrom and hooks adapted to be operated by said connections, of sockets, one over each hook, and adapted to receive the eyes of the boat lowering gear, catches pivoted beneath said sockets to move in a plane at right angles to that in which the hooks move, and means tending to raise the said catches, the relative positions of the catches and hooks being such that when the hooks are drawn back the catches will rise'in front of the hooks, substantially as described.

2. In a holding and disengaging gear for ships boats, the combination of sockets adapted to receive the eyes of boat lowering gear, hooks beneath said sockets, each hook having a threaded shank with nuts thereon, supports for the hooks adapted to engage the Shanks between the nuts thereon, whereby the height of the hooks relatively to the sockets can be adjusted by adjustment of the nuts, and a hand lever and connections therefrom to the hooks.

3. In a holding and disengaging gear for ships boats, the combination with the two hooks for engaging with the eyes of the boat lowering falls, of catches with means pivotally supporting them in a plane at right angles to that 1n which the said hooks can move and means tending to raise the ends of said catches, means for drawing back the hooks simultaneously whereby the catches are allowed to rise in front of the hooks, and means tending to move the hooks forward.

4. In a holding and disengaging gear for ships boats, the combination with the sockets near the ends of the boat adapted to receive the eyes ofthe lowering falls, and hooks with means supporting them beneath the sockets, of links connected to said hooks and to bell crank levers at the sides of the boat, a hand lever with means pivotally supporting it at the side of the boat, and

connections from the bell crank levers to the In testimony whereof, I have hereunto said hand lever, said connections extending signed my name this 5th day of July 1911, along the overhangng side pieces of the n the presence of two subscribing Witnesses. 10

boat and beneath the saine, whereby the op- TI-IOMAS IRVINE MACAULAY. eratng parts are all arranged to be pro- Witnesses:

teoted from damage, substantially as de- HUBERT A. (SrILL7 scribed. INGLES HAILES.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents. Washington, D. C. 

